Saturday, December 8, 2012

New picture books by Jane Yolen feature friendly dragons

“Don’t forget to wake the dragons before school,”
says a note from Mom. A little boy,
dressed as a knight, enters a room/cave with his dog. They climb a ladder to a giant bed, and
proceed to wake the dragons. The dragons
are both friendly and sleepy, gradually becoming lively; they appropriately
tumble the boy and his dog as they rise from their slumber.

Derek Anderson’s colorful paintings will appeal to
youngsters and parents alike. With
humorous illustrations, the boy is shown brushing a dragon’s teeth, feeding
them breakfast, and getting them dressed.
The dragons kiss their mom goodbye and fly, carrying the boy to “Knight
School”, where he says goodbye and they fly away. The paintings are accompanied by Jane Yolen’s
short, rhyming lines that use active words to keep children engaged.

This is a clever and creative book from a master
storyteller who never ceases to amaze us, well matched by beautiful paintings
that will keep children absorbed and encourage them to use their
imagination. The intended reading
audience is children 4 to 8. I read this
picture book with my six year old and we agreed it will make a nice gift for
her three-year-old cousin. For more information visit Simon and Schuster.

For the 3 and under set, just in time for the
Holiday season are Do Dinosaurs Say Merry
Christmas? And How Do Dinosaurs Say
Happy Chanukah?, new titles in Jane Yolen’s bestselling How Do Dinosaurs series illustrated by
Mark Teague and published by Blue Sky Press/Scholastic.